THE COTTAGE GARDENER. AttD COUNTRY GENTLEMAN. December si. 18S8. 17U 
from a temporary hotbed, covered with straw covers or 
tarpaulin. These are often worth sixpence each, in May. 
As for flowers, a few extra large specimens of Fuchsias 
might have a little assistance in the stove, for a few weeks, 
after they had broken freely ; but all the best specimens 
of Pelargoniums, Fuchsias, and Hoses, for July, will be 
quite forward enough in the coolest part of the green¬ 
house, or brick pit, and may have a little extra heat when 
deemed necessary. The Fuchsias you intend to bloom in 
May should receive but little pruning, and no potting, 
except top-dressing. The worst Geraniums, as respects 
specimens, should also be chosen for this purpose : they 
should be kept in small pots, no extra water given, and 
manure water applied after the flower - trusses appear. 
These should be kept at the warmest end of the green¬ 
house. Your Azaleas will come in time in the greenhouse, 
with little or no forcing. Cinerarias must be regularly 
shifted, and kept cool, or they will bloom before May. 
Daphnes, Deutzias, Cytisus, &c., will be in of their own 
accord, and so will Wallflowers, single and double. Many 
annuals—as Collinsia bicolor,Nemophilainsignis, Clarkias, 
&c.—if taken up from the borders now, or sown thinly, 
would bloom richly in such a pit by May. I need not allude 
to Stocks, Mignonette, &c. Hoses, also, kept in the cool 
end of the greenhouse, will be nicely in bloom, if placed 
in such a house about March. Your collection of Pelar¬ 
goniums and Fuchsias is very good, and will want con¬ 
siderable room to grow large specimens. If I have not 
hit upon the peculiar wants in your case, I have no doubt 
that these will be supplemented. My impression at 
present is, that the single-light hotbed would form your 
best commencement. H. Fish. 
ASPARAGUS. 
It is the season for commencing to force Asparagus, 
albeit not the planting season ; and, as I wish to say a 
few words about the forcing, I must seize the occasion 
to offer some miscellaneous remarks connected with its 
culture. 
Iu all the range of gardening matters, I do not think 
there is one thing so little understood by the majority as 
this excellent vegetable. I do not speak here of real gar¬ 
deners. But if you were to ask, what are the principles 
which dictate even the cutting of Asparagus ? I do not 
believe that one in twenty could give a rational answer. 
But in what vegetable, I should like to know, may we 
find a greater difference,—as to both quality, size, and 
general produce,—than in Asparagus ? In none, I believe, 
taking iu all these qualities. What, then, is the real 
secret of high culture in Asparagus? It cannot be a 
mystery. A genial soil, plenty of manure, deep digging, 
aud, of course, proper after culture,—these are the prin¬ 
cipal mysteries. But even these important points are 
not all: one thing yet remains,—if not more,—and that is, 
how to cut it. Iu order to render these things familiar 
to the unknowing, both scientific and practical men must 
pardon me for turning catechist for a moment. With 
such permission, I proceed thus :— 
1st. What soil will suit Asparagus ? 
2nd. Should it be deep ? 
3rd. Should it be rich P 
4th. When should I plant it ? 
5th. Am I obliged to water it with liquid manure ? 
6th. ITow long before I can cut ? 
7th. How must I cut it ? 
8th. How long will the beds last? 
And this, it must be confessed, is a goodly array of in¬ 
terrogatories ; but I must be forgiven for disposing of 
them in a somewhat summary way. 
1st. It loves a free soil—one rather loose than binding; 
and this should be so compounded, that no stagnation 
exist, but water pass through it readily. If the soil is not 
open and free, it must be rendered so by applications, and 
by well working. It should not be less than two feet in 
depth; if three, so much the better. If the subsoil is 
somewhat retentive, drainage should be had recourse to j 
and in all such cases the roots should be planted oh the 
surface of the ground, at a high level. 
2nd. Depth of soil is most essential: in situations 
where it is shallow a much greater quantity of manure 
is necessary. In such cases a very high coufSe of culture 
should be carried out, at the sides of the beds, to com¬ 
pensate for the want of depth; the alleys must be left 
wider, and manure buried beneath them. 
3rd. It is almost impossible to grow' superior Asparagus 
without much manure, or what is called mitck.- Artificial 
manures, however beneficial, will never accomplish this 
like the dunghill. 
4th. The best time to plant Asparagus is, when it had 
just begun to sprout, in April. The sprouts, however 1 , 
should not have risen above ground, so as to become 
greened; as it is better to cover them overhead when 
planted, three or four inches in depth. Some years back, 
I used to plant them after they had risen above the 
surface and become greened; and,as seedling plants always 
spring above ground before old roots, I felt it necessary 
to cover them overhead, for fear of late frosts, which are 
almost sure to nip precocious Asparagus. 1 found, how¬ 
ever, that they, in common with most other things, could 
not endure covering after becoming green ; and that lo 
leave them above ground w ithout, w as to have them frost¬ 
bitten. All this is obviated by removing the roots when the 
sprouts are about two inches long, and still white; then, 
by covering them three or four inches in thickness, they 
work below the surface uninjured, and their sprouts do 
not appear above ground until all danger from frosts is 
over. 
5th. There has been much said about using liquid 
manure during the growing season, and those w ho want 
to pet their Asparagus, may give it any quantity when 
dry, putting a handful of salt to every bucket of water. 
But since, in general gardening, there are so many rivals 
in the character of pets, it becomes us, in these times, so 
to establish things at first, that they need little attention 
afterwards. There is an old saying, that the first trouble 
is least, and true, indeed, it is in gardening. There is 
no garden in Britain where better Asparagus, or more 
abundant crops are grown, than at Oulton ; and yet I do 
nothing during the growing season in the way of petting 
them. But my practice is almost self-acting : I feel 
assured, that by my plan, if the Asparagus beds were not 
manured for four years after planting, they would, not¬ 
withstanding, produce respectable Asparagus in plenty. 
6th. Asparagus is best planted at two years old. It 
should then grow the first summer, and the second before 
it is cut; and, if cut rather lightly the first season, a first- 
rate crop may be expected in the year ensuing. 
7th. There are two or three ways of cutting Asparagus. 
One is to cut it on principle, the other is expediency. On 
principle, the maxim should be, from the beginning of 
the season, to cut all the very strongest of the shoots for 
culinary purposes, and to leave all the second and third- 
rate shoots possible. By this practice, the beds will long 
endure; but this much may be observed, that the cutting 
will sooner cease in the summer—the monopoly of so many 
growing shoots will prevent any succession after the 
beginning of June. The market-gardeners, in general, cut 
every shoot they can lay hands on, till near Midsummer ; 
but this is a breeches-pockct affair. Of course, the closer 
it is cut during the first three weeks, the longer is the 
succession, as such practice causes every bud to push. 
However, under all circumstances, by all means leave 
all the small spray, in order to keep the root in action, and 
to provide for future seasons. I force a hundred yards of 
beds every winter, and that intended for forcing is cut 
lightly ; indeed, little of the early is cut. But after the 
end of May I cut every rising shoot. The principle is 
this ; early shoots organise as early buds at their base, 
